Data processing system for managing chemical product usage

ABSTRACT

A data processing system is used to manage and track use of chemical product in a washing machine. A detergent dispenser distributes the chemical products (e.g., detergent, rinse agent, and bleach) to the washing machine. The dispenser includes a monitor that detects dispenser data based on distribution of the chemical product by the dispenser. A database is coupled to the dispenser and stores an account identifier and an alignment identifier in association with the dispenser data of the dispenser. The database further stores corporate data in association with the dispenser data, the account identifier, and the alignment identifier. An analysis application analyzes the dispenser data in relation with the corporate data to characterize use of the chemical product in the chemical application system and provide a feedback loop. The analysis application can limit its analysis to data associated with a given account identifier or a given alignment identifier.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/414,547, filed Apr. 14, 2003, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 10/027,116, filed on Dec. 19, 2001, now U.S. Pat.No. 6,697,706, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.No. 09/428,841, filed Oct. 28, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,377,868, eachof which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates generally to storage and processing of datarelated to chemical product usage, and more particularly, to collecting,communicating, and analyzing chemical product usage data based ondistribution of the product by a product dispenser.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Institutional laundry facilities, such as those employed in many largehotels, nursing homes, and hospitals, typically employ washing machineswith separate automated detergent dispensers. Generally, theseinstitutional washing machines are larger and wash greater volumes oflaundry over time than standard consumer washing machines used in homes.Typically, a separate, automated cleaning product dispenser is connectedto one or two industrial washing machines to automatically delivercleaning products, such as detergent, bleach, rinse agent, etc.,according to logic designed or programmed into the dispenser.

In a broader sense, automated chemical product (“chemistry”) dispensersare useful in many different chemical application systems, includingcleaning systems relating to laundry operations, warewashing operations(e.g., a dishwasher), water treatment operations, and pool and spamaintenance, as well as other systems, such as food and beverageoperations and agricultural operations. For example, chemical productsused in a warewashing operation may include detergent, de-ionized water,sanitizers, stain removers, etc. Chemistry used in agriculture mayinclude without limitation pesticides, herbicides, hydration agents, andfertilizers. Other applications of the present invention may be used in,without limitation, dairies and dairy farms, (e.g., in teat dips);breweries; packing plants; pools spas, and other recreational waterfacilities; water treatment facilities, and cruise lines. Other chemicalproducts may include without limitation glass cleaning chemicals, hardsurface cleaners, antimicrobials, germicides, lubricants, watertreatment chemicals, rust inhibitors,

Automated chemical product dispensers can reduce labor and chemistrycosts by automatically delivering predetermined amounts of chemicals ina proper sequence. Furthermore, some chemical products can be hazardousin concentrated form; therefore, automated chemical product dispensersreduce the risks of exposure to operators, who would otherwise measureand deliver the chemical products manually.

In a laundry operation, to coordinate the proper delivery of cleaningproduct for each washing machine cycle, both the washing machine and thedispenser are preferably programmed to run a given “formula” for aparticular type of item being washed. For example, if the laundryoperator is washing bed sheets, he or she selects a washing machineselection corresponding to a set of cycles (i.e., a formula) for“sheets” and selects a separate dispenser setting corresponding to a“sheets” formula of chemical products (e.g., including possiblydetergent, bleach, sanitizer, and rinse agent). Therefore, the dispensersupplies the proper cleaning product (or provides no cleaning product)for appropriate washer cycles, in accordance with the selected formulas.In this manner, for example, detergent is supplied to the washingmachine during the wash cycle and not during the rinse cycle.

Unfortunately, operator error (i.e., improper formula selections on oneor both of the washing machine and the dispenser) can result in thecleaning products being supplied to the washing machine during the wrongcycle or not at all. Such errors can result in improperly washed orpotentially damaged laundry items. Other costly inefficiencies caninclude washing items without filling the wash basin to capacity, whichwastes water, energy, and cleaning product and increases labor andmaintenance costs.

In addition, individual institutional laundry accounts tend to begeographically dispersed, requiring many individual field servicemanagers to physically visit individual laundry operations or accountsperiodically, to monitor product usage on a periodic basis at thoseoperations, and to provide the corrective instructions to thecorresponding laundry operators. Typically, this manual method fails toprovide the rapid feedback or the cross-account analysis that can behelpful to laundry operators in managing their operations.

Accordingly, it is desirable to maintain and analyze automatically areal-time or historical log of operational data detectable or storableby a dispenser or a dispenser-related device, preferably in relation tocorporate information, such as work shifts, facility location, hoteloccupancy rates, energy costs, etc., so as to facilitate rapidcorrective action. Existing approaches, however, fail to provide thecapability or capacity of automatically detecting large amounts ofdispenser data, communicating and recording dispenser data and corporatedata to a central database, and analyzing the data to provide feedbackto the laundry operation and/or the dispenser, particularly across anaggregation of multiple accounts within the same corporation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A communications network coupling one or more chemical dispenser sitesto a server computer and a database is useful to a corporation inmanaging its chemical product usage, as well as other costs. Forexample, a given hotel corporation operates multiple hotels throughoutthe nation. Each hotel, preferably corresponding to an account, includesone or more laundry operations (e.g., a dispenser site having adispenser and one or more washing machines). The dispenser or detergentvendor operates a server computer and database to which dispenser datafor one or more laundry operations within the corporation are stored.Exemplary dispenser data includes without limitation one or more of thefollowing data types: dispensed detergent amounts; dispensing times,dates, and sequences; water temperature; water flow volumes; chemicalproduct type; machine identifiers; washing machine signals; emptycapsule indications; start/end of formula indications, formulas, andother information originating at the detector site, whether detected bya dispenser or by an associated device (such as a remote temperatureprobe). Corporate data relating to the laundry operation, such asaccount information, alignment information, utility costs, employeeshift information, labor costs, and additional information relating toother aspects of the corporation or laundry operation, can be also bestored and analyzed alone or in combination with dispenser information.

By collecting and analyzing the dispenser and corporate data in thedatabase, a dispenser vendor can analyze this data to generateperformance information (such as product usage data) and providefeedback to the customer. For example, a calculation of the number ofpounds of laundry washed per occupied room (“LbsOCR)” can be made from acombination of dispenser data (e.g., the number of loads, whichcorresponds to the number of completed formulas) and corporate data(e.g., the number of occupied rooms). Furthermore, a target can be set(statically or dynamically) for the LbsOCR result, so that LbsOCRresults that are above the target are flagged as “out-of-spec.”“Out-of-spec” results, which may indicate inflated detergent, labor, andutility expenses, for example, can be fed back to the customer to allowthe customer to improve its laundry procedures.

Furthermore, the analysis may be performed across multiple accounts,such as multiple accounts within a single corporation or organizationalregion, to compare, for example, one account in a corporation withothers accounts with the same corporation. An alignment identifier isused to relationally group multiple accounts. In this manner, forexample, the LbsOCR of one account in a corporation can be comparedagainst the LbsOCR of other accounts in the corporation to determine itsrelative performance. The customer can then use this information toimprove the laundry procedures at poorer performing accounts.

In accordance with the present invention, the above and other problemsare solved by providing a monitor at a chemical product dispenser toautomatically detect and communicate dispenser data. Real-time orhistorical dispenser data is communicated to be stored in a centraldatabase in combination with an account identifier and corporate data(e.g., an alignment identifier) to facilitate analysis within and acrossaccounts associated with a laundry operator. Furthermore, all dataassociated with a particular alignment identifier (e.g., a corporateidentifier, a regional identifier, etc.) may be consolidated foranalysis, providing, for example, a corporate customer with a broad viewof problem trends and overall corporate performance of laundryoperations in its multiple accounts. Furthermore, performance targets,including dynamic performance targets, may be employed to detectperformance data that does not satisfy acceptable criteria.

A data processing system for managing use of chemical product in achemical application system is provided. A chemical product dispenserdistributes the chemical product to the chemical application system. Amonitor module detects dispenser data based on distribution of thechemical product by the chemical product dispenser or some otherdetection mechanism associated with the dispenser or dispenser site. Adatabase is coupled to the chemical product dispenser and stores theaccount identifier in association with the dispenser data of thechemical product dispenser. The database further stores corporate datain association with the dispenser data and the account identifier. Ananalysis application analyzes the dispenser data in relation with thecorporate data to characterize use of the chemical product in thechemical application system.

A method and computer program product for managing use of chemicalproduct in a chemical application system corresponding to a firstcustomer account identified by an account identifier are provided. Thechemical product is distributed to the chemical application system via afirst chemical product dispenser. The first dispenser data is recordedbased on distribution of the chemical product by the chemical productdispenser. The account identifier is recorded in association with thedispenser data of the first chemical product dispenser. Second dispenserdata is monitored from a second chemical product dispenser correspondingto a second customer account. The first dispenser data of the firstchemical product dispenser is analyzed relative to the second dispenserdata of the second chemical product dispenser to characterize the use ofthe chemical product in the chemical application system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a general purpose computer that implements the logicaloperations of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A illustrates an exemplary communications network includingdetergent dispensers coupled to a server computer in an embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 2B illustrates an exemplary topology of dispensers, accounts, andalignments relative to a server computer in an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary database schema in an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 4A illustrates a second portion of an exemplary database schema inan embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4B illustrates a third portion of an exemplary database schema inan embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary corporate summary report for a fictionallaundry operator in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary unit summary report for a fictionallaundry operator in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates exemplary shift productivity and cost reports for afictional laundry operator in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 illustrates exemplary general productivity and cost basis reportsfor a fictional laundry operator in an embodiment of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In the following description of the exemplary embodiment, reference ismade to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in whichis shown by way of illustration the specific embodiment in which theinvention may be practiced. It is to be understood that otherembodiments may be utilized as structural changes may be made withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention.

FIG. 1 depicts a general purpose computer capable of executing a programproduct embodiment of the present invention. One operating environmentin which the present invention is potentially useful encompasses thegeneral purpose computer. In such a system, data and program files maybe input to the computer, which reads the files and executes theprograms therein. Some of the elements of a general purpose computer areshown in FIG. 1 wherein a processor 101 is shown having an input/output(I/O) section 102, a Central Processing Unit (CPU) 103, and a memorysection 104. The present invention is optionally implemented in softwaredevices loaded in memory 104 and/or stored on a configured CD-ROM 108 orstorage unit 109 thereby transforming the computer system in FIG. 1 to aspecial purpose machine for implementing the present invention.

The I/O section 102 is connected to keyboard 105, display unit 106, diskstorage unit 109, and disk drive unit 107. Generally, in contemporarysystems, the disk drive unit 107 is a CD-ROM driver unit capable ofreading the CD-ROM medium 108, which typically contains programs 110 anddata. Computer program products containing mechanisms to effectuate thesystems and methods in accordance with the present invention may residein the memory section 104, on a disk storage unit 109, or on the CD-ROMmedium 108 of such a system. Alternatively, disk drive unit 107 may bereplaced or supplemented by a floppy drive unit, a tape drive unit, orother storage medium drive unit. The network adapter 111 is capable ofconnecting the computer system to a network via the network link 112.Examples of such systems include SPARC systems offered by SunMicrosystems, Inc., personal computers offered by IBM Corporation and byother manufacturers of IBM-compatible personal computers, and othersystems running a UNIX-based or other operating system. In accordancewith the present invention, software instructions such as those directedtoward communicating data between a client and a server; detectingproduct usage data, analyzing data, and generating reports may beexecuted by CPU 103, and data such products usage data, corporate data,and supplemental data generated from product usage data or input fromother sources may be stored in memory section 104, or on disk storageunit 109, disk drive unit 107 or other storage medium units coupled tothe system.

FIG. 2A illustrates an exemplary communications network includingdetergent dispensers 208 and 209 coupled to a server computer 226 in anembodiment of the present invention. An installation 200 includeswashing machines 206 and 207, a detergent dispenser 208, acontrol/monitor module 210, and a communication device 212 located at alaundry operation associated with a customer account identifier. Aninstallation 202 illustrates a second laundry operation in accordancewith the present invention.

Generally, FIG. 2A is intended to represent one or more laundryoperations coupled to the network 204. In an alternative embodiment, aninstallation may include multiple dispensers coupled to one or morewashing machines each. Furthermore, although FIG. 2A shows individualcontrol monitors in communication devices for each dispenser, in otherembodiments, multiple dispensers may be coupled to a singlecontrol/monitor module, and a single communications device may be usedto communicate data to and from multiple dispensers. It should also beunderstood that 1 or more dispensers may be associated with a singleaccount, and one or more accounts may be associated with a singlealignment ID (e.g., corporation).

The detergent dispenser 208 is coupled via hose 234 to the washingmachine 206 and via hose 235 to washing machine 207. Washing machine202, for example, is coupled to the dispenser 208 via a communicationslink 224. It should be understood that a dispenser can accommodate manydifferent types of washing machines. Some installations, for example,include modern dispensers coupled to older washing machines via ananalog interface.

Other detecting devices may be integrated with or used in associationwith the dispenser at the dispenser site within the scope of the presentinvention. For example, a flow meter for detecting water flow volumethrough input hose 234 may be used to generate detected dispenser datafor storage in the database. Other examples may include a remote orintegrated water temperature detector, a detector for determining theactual weight of laundry items in a wash basin, and other detectionoperations to provide detected dispenser data at the dispenser site.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the dispenser 208 suppliesdetergent and other cleaning products to the washing machine 206.Preferably, the detergent dispenser 208 receives containers of solidcleaning products into receptacles 214, 216 and 218. In an alternativeembodiment of the present invention, four receptacles are provided by adispenser. Accordingly, a dispenser having one or more receptacles forreceiving liquid or solid chemical products is contemplated within thescope of the present invention.

An input hose 220 receives hot water from the facility's hot watersystem (not shown). Preferably, the water temperature is 120° F. orgreater. The hot water mixes with the solid cleaning product mounted inthe detergent dispenser 208 by flowing through the solid cleaningproduct until a required amount of the cleaning product is mixed with ordissolved into the hot water. The amount of cleaning product is measureddirectly using a technique detailed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,845,965, entitled“METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DISPENSING SOLUTIONS”; U.S. Pat. No.4,858,449, entitled “CHEMICAL SOLUTION DISPENSER APPARATUS AND METHOD OFUSING”; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,964,185, entitled “CHEMICAL SOLUTIONDISPENSER APPARATUS AND METHOD OF USING”, all assigned to the assigneeof the present invention.

After a specified amount of cleaning product is supplied to the washingmachine 206 (i.e., an example of a chemical application system), thedispenser 208 cuts off the cleaning product supply to the washingmachine 206. The washing machine 206 receives the water and cleaningproduct mixture via hose 234, which continues its cycle with thesupplied cleaning product in its basin. The dispenser is then flushedwith fresh water from intake hose 220. The fresh water flows from thedispenser 208 through the hose 234 into the washing machine 206. Thewater and chemistry in the wash basin is applied to the laundry itemsduring the washing machine cycle. After the cycle completes, thewastewater and chemistry are dumped from the basin into the facility'ssewage line via hose 222.

Thereafter, the next washer cycle is signaled to the dispenser 208 fromthe washing machine 206 via link 224, which preferably consists ofthirteen wires, although other communications links are contemplatedwithin the scope of the present invention. In an embodiment of thepresent invention, the digital signal informs the dispenser 208 totransition to the next state in the cleaning product formula. In anembodiment having a washing machine providing analog cycle signals, theanalog signals are preferably converted to digital signals beforetransmission to the dispenser.

Although a washing machine is an example of a chemical applicationsystem, other chemical application systems are contemplated within thescope of the present invention. Other examples include, withoutlimitation, chemical dispensers used in dishwashers; chemicalapplication systems for “clean in place” systems; water sanitizingsystems such as, but not limited to, bath and spa systems; and herbicidedispensers in agricultural settings.

In an embodiment of the present invention shown in installation 200, thecontrol/monitor module 210 is a processor driven control and monitoringcircuit that preferably (1) controls the dispensing of cleaning productin accordance with selections made by a laundry operator, and/or (2)detects the amount and sequence of dispensed cleaning product, thesignals received from the washing machine over communications link 224,the temperature of hot water flowing through the dispenser 208, andother parameters including time, date, and duration of eachwash/dispense cycle. In an alternative embodiment of the presentinvention, the operation of the control/monitor module 210 may belimited to detecting data for communication to the database. Preferably,the control/monitor module 210 also includes a storage medium, such as asemiconductor memory device or a magnetic or optical storage device, fortemporarily storing the dispenser data locally and for storing dispensersystem data, such as formulas, dispenser numbers, account numbers, etc.However, the storage medium may be omitted in an alternative embodiment,particularly if generally continuous communication of dispenser data ismade to a remote database or storage medium.

The communications device 212 is coupled to the control/monitor module210 (1) to receive commands from the communications network 204 and (2)to access data detected and stored by the control/monitor module 210,including historical detected data and dispenser system data stored onthe local storage medium. The communications device 212 may beprogrammed to access the communications network 204, preferably by a LAN(local area network), WAN (wide area network), a dial-up connection, oranother well-known network connection.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the communications device 212periodically accesses a server computer 226 to provide data for storagein the database 228. As such, the communications device 212 preferablyaccesses real-time data detected by the control/monitor module 210 andany historical data stored on a local storage medium for transfer to thedatabase 228. In an alternative embodiment, the communications device212 maintains communications with the server computer 226 over thecommunications network 204 continually; therefore, the local storagemedium is unnecessary for storing detected data. Instead, thecommunications device 212 continually transmits real-time product usagedata to the server computer 226. In this embodiment, a small cachedevice may nevertheless be employed to accommodate network congestion orother communication delays at the communications device 212.

The communications device 212 can also receive commands via thecommunications network 204 to provide a feedback loop to the laundryoperation or the dispenser. These commands are transferred to thecontrol/monitor module 210. Such commands may include formula updates,calibration commands, test commands, alarm commands, interactivecommunications between the laundry operator or service technician andthe dispenser vendor or server computer facility, and other remotecontrol commands. This capability facilitates the management ofmultiple, geographically dispersed laundry operations by allowing theoperator, the service technician, or the dispenser vendor to distributecontrol commands from a central location via the communications network204. An example of the use of the feedback loop involves updating aformula stored in the storage medium of a dispenser.

The client computer 230 represents a thick or thin client coupled to theserver computer 226 via a communications link 234, such as a LAN. Theclient 230 initiates an analysis application resident on the clientcomputer 230 or resident on the server computer 226 to generate reports,such as report 232 providing analysis of dispenser data and corporatedata recorded in the database 228, and may also include other productusage data derived from a combination of the dispenser data and thecorporate data. Broadly, “product usage data” refers to data relating toproduct usage or use of a chemical application system, which may includewithout limitation chemical application system usage information, laborusage information, utility usage information, procedural errorinformation, and performance information. Furthermore, in one embodimentof the present invention, the client computer 230 initiates commandsthrough the communications network 204 to the communication devices ofinstallation 200 and 202 for remotely managing the laundry operation(e.g., changing formulas).

A server computer 250 is optionally coupled to the server computer 226to provide corporate data to the database 228. Corporate data may relateto one or more accounts in association with an alignment ID and mayinclude without limitation labor, energy, water, detergent, and sewagecosts, shift personnel identifiers, and the number of occupied rooms forgiven time periods. By communicating the corporate data automaticallyfrom the laundry operator's corporate or account business systems,manual entry of corporate data can be avoided. However, in an embodimentof the present invention, manual entry is contemplated, for example,using the client computer 230. Furthermore, the server computer 250 maybe linked to other networks via a communications link 252.

FIG. 2B illustrates an exemplary hub and spoke topology of dispensers,accounts, and alignments relative to a server computer 250 in anembodiment of the present invention. Other topologies, such as a daisychain topology or a ring topology, are also contemplated within thescope of the present invention. The server computer 250 is coupled tomultiple accounts (such as a hotel account 276 or hospital account 254).Within each account are one or more dispensers (such as dispenser 290).Each account may include an alignment identifier to associate it withother accounts, as indicated by groupings (or “alignment groupings”)258, 260, 262, 264, and 266. The grouping relationships may behierarchical (see groupings 258 and 260), or the grouping relationshipsmay cut across hierarchical boundaries (see grouping 262). Note alsothat accounts 268 and 270 are not included in a grouping, preferablymeaning that no alignment identifier is specified for these twoaccounts.

For example, grouping 260 indicates an alignment within a healthcare andlodging corporation. Accounts 256, 272, 274, 276, 278, 280 and 282 areaccounts within the healthcare and lodging corporation. Furthermore,grouping 264 indicates a grouping of hospital accounts within thehealthcare and lodging corporation, and a grouping 258 indicates anorganizational alignment of hotels, such as a regional alignment (e.g.,hotels in the Eastern United States), within the healthcare and lodgingcorporation. A grouping 266 indicates an alignment within a hospitalcorporation and includes accounts 254, 286, and 288. The grouping 262 isassociated with hospital accounts in general and cuts across boundariesof the two corporate alignments. The grouping 262 is useful foranalyzing product usage data across a given industry, for example.

FIG. 3 illustrates a first portion of an exemplary database schema in anembodiment of the present invention. Each large box represents a datatable used in the exemplary database 228 shown in FIG. 2A. The name ofeach data table is label at the top of each box (e.g., “tblAcct”).“Table” generally refers to data arranged in rows and columns. Inrelational database management systems, information is primarily storedin the form of tables, with columns representing individual data fieldsin the table and rows representing individual entries in the table. InFIG. 3, the data fields (i.e., columns) of each table are listed belowthe label of the table.

A tblAlign table 300 contains information about a group of accounts. Ina preferred embodiment, each row of the tblAlign table 300 correspondsto a given customer that manages one or more laundry accounts. The datafield AlignID is a unique key for each row of the tblAlign table 300.The data field AlignID is an example of an alignment identifier usefulfor analysis of database information for a given corporation or otherorganizational category. It should be understood that, in an alternativeembodiment, multiple levels of alignment ID may be used within the scopeof the present invention. For example, a first alignment ID maycorrespond to a corporate customer level, and a second alignment IDlevel may correspond to regional divisions within the overallcorporation. The data field AlignName contains a textual descriptor orlabel of the business entity corresponding to the tblAlign table entry.

The data field AlignFdata and AlignLdata, exemplary time periodspecifiers, indicate the first and last dates of a time period for whichvalid data exists in relation to a given AlignID. In this manner, theanalysis application need not search all available data in the databaseto determine whether a requested time period contains valid data for aparticular alignment ID. The label “1”, positioned relative to the datafield AlignID in the tblAlign table 300, and the infinity symbol (:),positioned relative to the data field AlignID in the tblAcct table 302,indicate a one-to-many relationship between the tblAlign table 300 andthe tblAcct table 302.

A tblAcct table 302 contains information about a given account (e.g.,the laundry operations at a particular facility corresponding to a givenAlignID). The data field AcctID is a unique key for a given accountwithin the database. The data field AssocID includes a unique identifierrepresenting a key to a tblAssoc table 318. The tblAcct table 302 alsocontains a data field IsActive, which specifies whether the associatedaccount is currently under contract, currently operational, or someother active status. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention,the data field IsActive is a yes/no parameter, meaning that the row isthe active row for a particular account, or it is not. The tblAcct table302 also contains a data field DateMod which includes the creation datefor the tblAcct table 302. A data field Acct# includes an account numberassigned to the given account. Preferably, the account number isspecified by the detergent vendor, dispenser vendor, or by some othersource, so as to correspond to other corporate data. A data fieldAcctName is included in the tblAcct table 302 and specifies a textualidentifier for the account (e.g., an individual account of the fictionalcorporation “MegaHotel Corp.”). The data field AlignID corresponds to anAlignID key from tblAlign table 300 to establish a relationship betweenthe two tables.

The data fields AcctFdata and AcctLdata, exemplary time periodspecifiers, indicate the first and last dates of a time period for whichvalid row data exists in relation to a given AcctID. In this manner, theanalysis application need not search all available data in the databaseto determine whether a requested time period contains valid data for aparticular account ID.

A tblAlignTgt table 314 specifies the performance targets of the laundryoperation corresponding to an alignment ID stored in data field AlignID.The performance targets are used to determine when a particularoperational result is “out-of-spec” (i.e., outside of desired targetparameters). The data field TargetID represents the unique key for eachrow of the tblAlignTgt table 314. The data field IsCurrent indicateswhether the given row of the tblAlignTgt table 314 is current for thevalue stored in the data field AlignID, relating back to the tblAligntable 300. Because the tblAlignTgt table 314 relates to the tblAligntable 300 via a data field AlignID, the table parameters stored in thetblAlignTgt table 314 are assigned for a given alignment (e.g.,corporation). Alternative target parameters can be configured foradditional alignment levels or accounts by way of additional targettables. Furthermore, the target parameters may be changed over timeusing the data field IsCurrent and the data fields StlntDate andEndlntDate, which describe the first and last date of a time periodduring which the associated target parameters are valid.

The data field LbsOCR defines a target parameter for pounds (lbs.) peroccupied room. The data fields S1Lds/Day, S2Lds/Day and S3Lds/Day definetarget parameters for the number of loads per day washed during threeshifts. The data field Temp defines a target parameter for the hot watertemperature supplied to a washer, preferably as detected by thedispenser.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the target parameters arespecified with predetermined values that can be updated manually orautomatically over time by adding new rows in the tblAlignTgt table 314.In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, however, thetarget parameters may be a function of other data within the database.For example, by way of a database query, the average LbsOCR may becalculated and entered in the tblAlignTgt table 314 for a particulartime period and alignment ID. In an alternative embodiment, the targetis dynamically set by taking the recent corporate average (i.e., thelast 30 days of detected dispenser data and corporate data) andadjusting it by 20% to set a new target. For example, using a corporateaverage of 14.7 lbs. per occupied room over the past thirty days, adynamic target of 17.64 lbs. per occupied room (14.7*1.2=17.64) is set.Therefore, all accounts have a lbs. per occupied room exceeding 17.64are considered “out-of-spec”.

A tblCensus table 304 describes occupancy data relating to a particularaccount, as represented by data field AcctID and a particular alignment,as represented by data field AlignID. The tblCensus table contains adata field CensusID, which is a unique key for the table. The tblCensustable 304 also includes a data field SDate and EDate, which areexemplary time period specifiers defining the start and end date of aperiod for which the occupancy data in a given row is valid. In otherwords, if the laundry operator provides occupancy data, as supplied indata field Occpncy, on a weekly basis, then the start and end dateswould define a week. Alternatively, for example, a daily occupancyresult would have start and end dates that are equal or that would spana twenty-four hour period from one day to the next.

The tblGenInfo table 316 contains information about costs, energy usage,and shift start times, although other general information parameters maybe added within the scope of the present invention. A data fieldGeninfoID includes a unique key for each row of the tblGenInfo table316. The data fields StIntDate, EndIntDate and IsCurrent specify thetime period for which a particular row of the tblGenInfo table 316 isvalid and whether it is the current entry in the tblGenInfo table 316.The data fields StIntDate and EndIntDate are exemplary time periodspecifiers. The data field AcctID relates the row of the tabletblGenInfo table 316 to a particular account in the tblAcct table 302.The date of the tblGenInfo table 316 may be entered manually or it canbe delivered automatically through a computer link to an appropriatesource (e.g., a utility server, a hotel server, a corporate server,etc.).

The data fields Shift1, Shift2, and Shift3, indicate the start times ofeach work shift. In an alternative embodiment, start and end times ofeach work shift may be included in the tblGenInfo table 316. The datafield Labor indicates the cost per hour of the laundry operation laborforce. In an alternative embodiment, labor can vary on a per shift basisor on an hourly basis (e.g., according to shift premiums) and may bespecified with more detail in the tblGenInfo table 316 in additionalfields. Utility costs are represented by data fields Water, Sewage, andEnergy. The cost of water is preferably represented on a per 1,000gallon basis. The cost of sewage treatment is provided on a per 1,000gallon basis. The cost of energy is indicated as the total energy usedin therms by the laundry operation. A therm is a unit used to measure aquantity of heat and equals 100,000 British thermal units (BTUs). Thedata field TempRise indicates the number of degrees in Fahrenheit orCelsius that the water from the public utility must be heated in orderto meet the target water temperature. The data fields P1Cost, P2Cost,P3Cost, and P4Cost indicate the cost of cleaning product on a per casebasis. Alternative costing measures may be used, including cost ofproduct on a per capsule basis or on a per measured amount basis.

The tblDisp table 306 includes a unique key in data field DispID. ThetblDisp table 306 also includes the data field storing in an AcctID torelate the tblDisp table 306 to an account. A data field Disp# stores adispenser number assigned to the dispenser within an account. A passwordis stored in the data field Password, which regulates access to theprogram logic of the dispenser associated with each entry. For example,in order to change formulas at a given dispenser, a field servicemanager must enter the associated password into a keypad on thedispenser.

A data field 4thProduct is a yes/no field indicating whether thedispenser supports the dispensing of a fourth product. A data fieldMultFeeds is a yes/no parameter, indicating whether the dispensersupports multiple feeds of a given product per formula. That is, somedispensers support multiple cycles that request the same detergent to bedispensed within a particular formula. The data field MultFeeds storesthe indicator of whether the dispenser supports such a capability. Thedata fields DispFdata and DispLdata, exemplary time period specifiers,define the first and last dates for which the data in a given row in thetblDisp table 306 is valid.

A tblAssoc table 318 includes a unique key in data field AssocID. Anidentifier of a particular sales district is contained in the data fieldDistrictID. A second level of hierarchy in the district is contained inthe data field AreaID and the first and last name of the associate isstored in the data fields FirstName and LastName. Preferably anassociate is a person responsible for managing an account, such as afield service technician or field service manager.

A tblMach table 308 contains a unique key in data field MachID. A datafield Machine# contains a number identifying the machine (e.g., “1” or“2” in a dispenser that supports up to two machines) for each dispenserassociated with the dispenser identifier in the data field DispID of thetblMach table 308. Alternative embodiments of the present invention mayserve more than two machines. The data field MachWt indicates thecapacity of the corresponding machine (e.g., thirty-five pounds or onehundred pounds). The data field ChartStop indicates whether the machinesupports a command that puts the washing machine on hold, particularlyduring a bath cycle. A data field MicroMode indicates whether thedispenser is capable of taking signals in a specific format. Preferably,the specific format specifies both the product that the washing machinerequests as well as the formula. In this fashion, the laundry operatorcan merely program the washing machine, for example, for “sheets”, andthe washing machine can communicate the corresponding formula identifierto the dispenser, rather than relying on manual settings on both thewashing machine and the dispenser.

A tblFormulas table 310 contains information about the formulassupported by a particular machine, which is specified by the identifierin the data field MachID. A unique key is stored in the data fieldFormID. A number associated with a particular formula is stored in thedata field Formula#. In a preferred embodiment, the data field Formula#typically includes the numbers 1 through 10; however, the number offormulas need not be limited to ten formulas within the scope of thepresent invention. A data field FrmLkUpID stores a unique identifierused to look up a particular formula name and weight factor in thetblFormLk table 312. The data fields P1Amt, P2Amt, P3Amt, and P4Amtstore amounts of products to be dispensed during requested cycles of thewashing process. P1, P2, P3, and P4 correspond to product numbersassigned to the various receptacles in the dispenser, such asdetergents, bleaches, stain remover and rinse agents. Although only oneamount is illustrated for each product in the tblFormulas table 310 ofFIG. 3, additional amount fields may be added for each product insupport of the multiple feed capability identified in the tblDisp table306. In a preferred embodiment, three amounts are allowed for P1, threeamounts are allowed for P2, one amount is allowed for P3, and threeamounts are allowed for P4.

A tblSignal table 320 contains information about signals received in agiven dispenser. A unique key is stored in the data field SignaliD. Thedispenser ID associated with the dispenser receiving the signal isstored in the data field DispID. The unique key is stored in the datafield ProdID and used to look up product information in the tblPrdLkUptable 322. The data field Signal contains a number for the signalreceived from a given dispenser. In one embodiment of the presentinvention, the data fields PFA, PFB, and PFC contain product factorcodes useful in determining the amount of cleaning product dispensed bya given dispenser. In an alternate embodiment, one or more productfactor codes (e.g., PF1-PFn) may be used for each signal. Furthermore,one or more of the illustrated data fields may contain a null value(e.g., representing that the product factor is not used).

The tblFormLk table 312 contains information relating to particularformulas supported by a dispenser. The data field FrmLkUpID isassociated with a corresponding ID in the tblFormulas table 310. Thedata field Formula contains a textual or numerical formula name or labelfor a given formula. The data field WtFactor contains an industry andvendor develop factor correlating the weight supported by a particularwasher with a given laundry item. For example, the proper loading of a100 lbs. washing machine basin with sheets is deemed by the industry orvendor to be 90 actual lbs. of dry linen, whereas the proper loading ofa 100 lbs. basin with blankets is 70 lbs. Therefore the WtFactor forsheets is 0.9 and the WtFactor for blankets is 0.7.

A tblPrdLkUp table 322 provides lookup data for given products. The datafield ProdID contains a unique key for each product. The data fieldProdType contains a product number or category relating to a product ina vendor's inventory. The data field ProdName contains a textual ornumerical label identifying a given product. A data field g/Capsindicates the number of grams per capsule of product. The data fieldCaps/Case indicates the number of capsules in a case of the givenproduct. A data field EmptyWt indicates the weight of an empty capsule.A data field DisplayNm indicates a name to be displayed on an LED (lightemitting diode) display on a dispenser.

FIG. 4A illustrates a second portion of an exemplary database schema inan embodiment of the present invention. A tblDataArch table 400 containsexemplary detected dispenser data communicated by a dispenser andcommunicated to the database. The data field ID is a unique key for eachtblDataArch table 400 entry. A data field DateArch contains the date ofthe recording of a given row of the tblDataArch table 400. Date fieldsAcctID and AlignID correspond to unique keys of the tblAcct table 302and the tblAlign table of FIG. 3. The data fields Date and Timecorrespond to the date and time of a given event in the dispenser. Thedata field Date Time is preferably a concatenation or other combinationof the date and time field entries. The data fields MachID, FormID, andSignalID correspond to the unique keys in the tblMach table 308, thetblFormulas table 310, and the tblSignal table 320 of FIG. 3. The datafield Amount preferably contains a detected amount of product dispensedfor a particular event or for a given event. A data field Code containsan event code to identify a particular event, as described in thetblEvntCde table 402. A data field Inf contains informational data suchas end of formula, start of formula, capsule empty signals, and otherinformational data detected by the dispenser.

A tblEvntCde table 402 includes an EvntCode data field associated withthe data field Code in tblDataArch table 400. A data field Text includestext relating to the event code. The text may be displayed in a reportto improve the readability of archived data.

Table 1 illustrates exemplary dispenser data communicated to a databaseof an embodiment of the present invention. Dispenser data can alsoinclude information based on detection of water temperature from aremote or integrated temperature probe, detection of the actual weightof laundry items in a wash basin, detection of water flow volume througha hose, and other detection operations at the dispenser site. In oneembodiment of the present invention, code 68 indicates “start offormula”, code 4 indicates a dispensing event, and code 36 indicates and“end of formula”. Other codes are contemplated within the scope of thepresent invention, including a code indicating an empty product capsule.Furthermore, in an embodiment of the present invention, the “INFO” fieldindicates either water temperature (in association with codes 68 and 4)or complete formula time (in association with code 36). TABLE 1Exemplary Dispenser Data ACCNT# DISP# DATE TIME MACH# FORM# PROD# AMOUNTINFO CODE 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 2:44:00 AM 1 6 1 60 120 68 98494825 1Apr. 1, 1998 2:56:00 AM 1 6 4 4 122 4 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 2:57:00 AM1 6 3 8 13 36 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 3:22:00 AM 1 1 1 120 116 6898494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 3:31:00 AM 1 1 2 25 118 4 98494825 1 Apr. 1,1998 3:49:00 AM 1 1 4 4 120 4 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 3:49:00 AM 1 1 3 827 36 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 4:07:00 AM 1 1 1 120 122 68 98494825 1Apr. 1, 1998 4:16:00 AM 1 1 2 25 116 4 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 4:33:00AM 1 1 4 4 118 4 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 4:34:00 AM 1 1 3 8 27 3698494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 4:42:00 AM 1 1 1 120 120 68 98494825 1 Apr. 1,1998 4:52:00 AM 1 1 2 25 122 4 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 5:10:00 AM 1 1 44 116 4 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 5:10:00 AM 1 1 3 8 28 36 98494825 1 Apr.1, 1998 5:29:00 AM 1 4 1 125 118 68 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 5:40:00 AM 14 2 25 120 4 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 5:56:00 AM 1 4 3 0 27 36 98494825 1Apr. 1, 1998 6:16:00 AM 1 2 1 100 122 68 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 6:26:00AM 1 2 2 18 116 4 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 6:44:00 AM 1 2 4 4 118 498494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 6:45:00 AM 1 2 3 8 29 36 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 19987:41:00 AM 1 1 1 120 120 68 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 7:51:00 AM 1 1 2 25122 4 98494825 1 Apr. 1, 1998 8:08:00 AM 1 1 4 4 116 4 98494825 1 Apr.1, 1998 8:08:00 AM 1 1 3 8 27 36

FIG. 4B illustrates a third portion of an exemplary database schema inan embodiment of the present invention. A tblFieldStp table 404 includesinformation captured by a field service technician at an account site. Adata field FSID is a unique key in the tblFieldStp table 404. A datafield AcctID is a unique key from the tblAcct table 302 of FIG. 3. Adata field Date contains the date of a given field stop by a technician.Data fields InvP1, InvP2, InvP3, and InvP4 contain data entered into adispenser or into a corporate database that can be communicated to thedatabase of an embodiment of the present invention, representing theinventory of products P1, P2, P3 and P4 at a given account. Data fieldAddP1, AddP2, AddP3, and AddP4 represent the amount of given productsshipped to an account, preferably received from a corporate database.

A tblFSData table 406 contains data corresponding to each dispenserserviced during a field stop. FSDataID is a unique ID in the tblIFSDatatable 406. The data field FSID corresponds to a unique key of thetblFieldStp table 404. The data field DispID corresponds to a unique keyof the tblDisp table 306 of FIG. 3. Data fields P1Wt, P2Wt, P3Wt, andP4Wt contain information recorded by a technician as to the amount ofproduct left in a capsule of a given product during the field stop.

A data field Mach# includes a machine number for the washing machineconnected to a given dispenser. The machine number stored in data fieldMach# corresponds to the machine from which tests are performed by thetechnician in the basin of the washing machine. Preferably, thetechnician extracts a sample of wash water from the basin of the machineto test the accuracy of the dispenser. A data field Form# indicates thecurrent formula being dispensed by the dispenser to a given machine. Adata field AlkTitrn indicates the results of a titration proceduremeasuring the alkalinity of the water in the basin of the machine undertest in parts per million (PPM). A data field CL2Titrn indicates theresults of a titration procedure measuring the chlorine in the water inthe basin of the machine under test in PPM. A data field pH indicatesthe acidity of the water in the wash basin. A data field Hours indicatesthe number of hours for which the dispenser has run in a given account.A data field Notes contains any notes recorded by the technician duringthe field stop. A data field PrevDate indicates the last time a fieldstop was made at a given dispenser. Data fields PrevP1Wt, PrevP2Wt,PrevP3Wt, and PrevP4Wt indicate the amount of product left in a capsulefor each product during the last field stop.

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary corporate summary report 500 for afictional laundry operator in an embodiment of the present invention.The report 500 is generated by an analysis application executing withinthe client/server architecture illustrated in FIG. 2A. Examples ofanalysis applications include small-scale and medium-scale databaseapplications written in Microsoft Access running on a client computerbut can also include large server-based database applications, patternrecognition applications, and neural net systems using minicomputers andmainframes. The dispenser data and/or corporate data used to generatethe report is preferably retrieved from the database 228 of FIG. 2A,analyzed by the analysis application, and displayed to a user on theclient computer 230. Alternatively, the report may be saved as adocument file or printed out in hard copy.

Various elements of the report 500 correspond to data fields describedby database schema of FIGS. 3 and 4 or are derived from data in suchdata fields. The report 500 relates to a summary of laundry operations(i.e., accounts) for a fictional hotel corporation. The hotelcorporation in this example owns or manages multiple hotel facilities,each hotel facility having a corresponding account ID. Furthermore, eachaccount reported in report 500 shares a common alignment ID to indicate,for example, that the individual accounts are managed by the same hotelcorporation.

In an alternative report (not shown), summary and historical reports areavailable on an account-by-account basis, allowing the laundry operatora means of tracking and detecting wash errors and cost issues for anindividual account. However, some laundry operation problems are notapparent on an account-by-account basis, and only reveal themselves whenanalyzed across multiple accounts. Therefore, a corporate summary,spanning multiple accounts corresponding to a single alignment ID, isuseful in identifying trends and corporate-wide laundry operationproblems. Accordingly, the hotel corporation can effectively manage itslaundry operations on both an account-by-account basis and acorporate-wide basis to manage costs and improve efficiency. Suchinformation, for example, may be useful in developing training programsfor laundry employees, negotiating washer and dispenser maintenanceagreements, negotiating chemical product supply agreements, andcoordinating scheduled maintenance throughout a corporation's multiplelaundry operations.

The exemplary report 500 shows summary data relating to a time periodfrom May 1, 1999 to May 30, 1999, as shown in report section 502. Thenumber of days in the time period is also shown. The number of units (“#of Units”) field shows the number of accounts included in the summaryreport, as grouped according to their alignment ID. The “occupancy”label shows the number of occupied rooms within all of the corporation'saccounts (e.g., individual hotel facilities) included in the summary.The “Laundry Lbs” label shows the number of pounds of laundry washedduring the time period. The “Lbs/Occupied Rm” label shows a calculationbased on the “Occupancy” and “Laundry Lbs” fields. The Lbs/Occupied Rmresult is an example of product usage data derived from a combination ofdispenser data and corporate data, demonstrating an advantage of anembodiment to the present invention. A dispenser is capable of detectingthe number of washes performed during a particular time period by virtueof the number of times it provides cleaning product to a washingmachine. This dispenser data can be communicated to the database via acommunications device. In addition, the number of occupied roomscorresponding to a particular account is corporate data used to managethe business operations within a corporation. This corporate data mayalso be communicated to the database, for example, via a communicationslink from a business server computer.

Typically, the pounds of laundry washed is estimated based on thecapacity of each washing machine unit in an account and the number ofwashes performed, which are examples of dispenser data. A method ofestimating the pounds of laundry washed calculates the product of thewashing machine size (e.g., 100 lbs.) times the WtFactor assigned togiven type of laundry item. Over a period of time, the estimated poundsof laundry in each washed load are summed. In an alternative embodiment,a laundry operation having the capability of actually weighing the itemsin each load of laundry, perhaps by having a weighing mechanism withinthe washer itself, is also contemplated within the present invention.

The bar graph 504 shows the average occupancy (in units of 1,000occupied rooms) on a monthly basis over a one year period. The bar graph504 data is generated from real-time or historical occupancy data, whichis an example of corporate data, received from the corporation andentered manually or automatically into the database. Bar graph 506illustrates the pounds per occupied room on a monthly basis over a oneyear period. The data reflected in bar graph 506 is also derived fromdispenser data and corporate data recorded in the database.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary unit summary report for a fictionalcorporation in an embodiment of the present invention. The unit summaryreport 600 is generated by an analysis application running on the clientcomputer or the server computer in an embodiment of the presentinvention. The bar chart 602 shows the number of units (i.e., accounts)having a calculated average pounds of laundry per occupied room. Thebars indicated by region 614 indicate the number of units that are “outof spec” or outside of a desired threshold or target, as defined bytarget parameters from an alignment target table or account target tablein database 228 of FIG. 2A. Such information is useful to control energycosts, for example. If a washing machine is not being run with fullloads (as detectable in graphs 506 and 602 and report 608), energyneeded to heat the water and run the washing machines is wasted on extraloads.

The report section shown at 608 profiles the pounds of laundry washedper occupied room, including the corporate average, the number of unitsout of spec, the number of units out of spec for more than ninety days,and the potential utility and labor savings available if the out-of-specunits were brought within target parameters. The “potential savings”result demonstrates a particularly useful advantage in combiningdispenser data and corporate data into a central repository or databasefor analysis of remotely distributed laundry operations. Furthermore, ifthe out-of-spec units are distributed across multiple accounts, themagnitude of potential utility and labor savings would not have been assignificant as they are when analyzed on a corporate-wide basis. The useof an alignment identifier allows analysis of selected aligned accountsacross the entire corporation, an organizational component, or ageographical region, and amplifies management possibilities on acorporate-wide basis.

The bar chart 604 shows the number of units having a given average hotwater temperature within a corporation. Hot water is a particularlycrucial factor in the efficient performance of cleaning products andwashing machines. In an embodiment of the present invention, a hot watertemperature of 120° F. or greater is preferred for optimal cleaningperformance, particularly for bleaching and oil removal. The bar chart604 provides means for analyzing the hot water temperature on acorporate-wide basis. The results indicated by region 616 indicate thenumber of units that are out-of-spec relative to hot water temperature.In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, hot watertemperature is measured by the dispenser as it flows through thedispenser and mixes with the solid cleaning products, although in analternative embodiment, the hot water temperature may be measuredseparately by a remote sensor and provided to the database as corporatedata.

Procedural error bar graph 606 and a report section 612 show the numberof units having a given average of loads with procedural errors. Aprocedural error results when a dispenser setting and the washer settingare not set to correspond to the same wash item type. A procedural erroris detected when the dispenser, being set to a given setting, expectswasher signals in accordance with the selected formula. If the washerfails to provide the expected signals (e.g., if the dispenser isexpecting a bleach signal from the washer, but never receives it), aprocedural error will be flagged and communicated to the database. Theanalysis application sums the number of units having an average givennumber of errors during a specified time period and generates the bargraph 606 to illustrate the results. The results indicated by region 618indicate the number of units that are out-of-spec relative to theaverage percentage of loads with procedural errors. The report 612illustrates the corporate average across all or a predetermined set ofaccounts. The report 612 also indicates the number of units that areout-of-spec and the number of units that are out-of-spec for greaterthan ninety days.

An alternative method of detecting procedural errors uses timingdiscrepancies between an actual formula time and an expected formulatime. For example, when the washer program is correct a formula mayrequire 25 minutes to complete from signal 1 to signal 3. If a wrongformula is used on the washer (relative to the setting on thedispenser), the washer program may only require 20 minutes (e.g.,without a bleach cycle). This discrepancy is flagged as a proceduralerror.

FIG. 7 illustrates exemplary shift productivity and cost reports for afictional laundry account in an embodiment of the present invention. Acorresponding report may be generated for an entire corporation or otherorganization subdivision, in accordance with the alignment ID. Thereport 700 includes individual reports, such as summary report section702, a pie chart 706, and shift productivity bar graphs 704, 708 and710. A legend 712 is also illustrated in report 700. The report section702 includes a time period, the number of days included in the timeperiod, the total occupancy during the time period, the pounds oflaundry washed during the time period, the average water temperatureduring the time period, the number of wash loads during the time period,and the number of procedural errors detected during the time period.Using corporate data available from the database, in combination withindustry accepted formulas or other actual corporate data, a pie chart706 illustrates the allocation of expenses relating to the time periodshown in report section 702.

The bar graph 704 illustrates the number of loads per day washed duringthe time period and divided by shifts. As shown by the legend 712, thebar graph 704 shows both the average loads washed per day during thetime period, and a historical average calculated over the life of theaccount. The bar graph 708 illustrates the number of procedural errorsdetected per day on a per shift basis. As shown by the legend 712, thebar graph 708 shows both the average errors occurring during the timeperiod, and a historical average calculated over the life of theaccount. In bar graph 710, the percentage of procedural errors is shownon a per shift basis. As shown by the legend 712, the bar graph 710shows both the average percentage of errors occurring during the timeperiod, and a historical average calculated over the life of theaccount.

FIG. 8 illustrates exemplary general productivity and cost basis reportsfor a fictional laundry account in an embodiment of the presentinvention. The report 800 includes bar graphs 802, 804, 806, 810 and812. The bar graph 802 illustrates the pounds of laundry washed peroccupied room. The bar graph 804 shows the cost of labor per occupiedroom associated with the laundry operation. The bar graph 806illustrates the number of procedural errors per occupied room. The bargraph 810 illustrates the cost of chemistry per occupied room. The bargraph 812 illustrates the cost of utilities per occupied room. Asindicated by legend 808, the bar graphs 802, 804, 806, 810 and 812include actual results (i.e., detected over the time period shown inreport section 702 of FIG. 7), an average of a particular account, theoverall corporate average, and the corporate target.

The report section 814 summarizes the cost basis used in the report 800.The components of the report section 814 illustrate exemplary corporatedata elements recorded in the database. The labor cost basis, forexample, may be an average labor cost, or may be further broken out intospecific labor costs for the laundry operators or for individual shifts.Likewise, the water, sewage and energy costs may be averages orestimates, or they may be updated on a real time basis. The temperaturerise data element indicates the differential between the watertemperature received from a public utility and the hot water temperaturedetected in a dispenser.

The embodiments of the invention described herein are implemented aslogical steps in one or more computer systems. The logical operations ofthe present invention are implemented (1) as a sequence ofprocessor-implemented steps executing in one or more computer systemsand (2) as interconnected machine modules within one or more computersystems. The implementation is a matter of choice, dependent on theperformance requirements of the computer system implementing theinvention. Accordingly, the logical operations making up the embodimentsof the invention described herein are referred to variously asoperations, steps, objects, or modules.

The above specification, examples and data provide a completedescription of the manufacture and use of the composition of theinvention. Embodiments of the present invention; however, may be appliedin areas other than laundry operations. For example, in an agricultureapplications, a herbicide dispenser may be supply herbicide to achemical application system, such as an irrigation system or a herbicidesprayer on a crop duster or tractor. The herbicide dispenser data (e.g.,timing, amount, and identity of herbicide being dispensed) may becombined with corporate data (e.g., chemical costs, labor costs, fieldproduction results, weather conditions, soil conditions, and type ofplants) to manage chemical usage. Furthermore, sanitation systems in thefood and beverage industries and water treatment industries are alsocontemplated within the scope of the present invention. As manyembodiments of the invention can be made without departing from thespirit and scope of the invention, the invention resides in the claimshereinafter appended.

1. A method for monitoring operation of a plurality of cleaninginstallations, wherein each cleaning installation comprises a chemicalproduct dispenser for dispensing one or more chemical products, themethod comprising: receiving operating parameter data associated withoperation of the plurality of cleaning installations, wherein theoperating parameter data comprises dispenser data relating todistribution of the one or more chemical products in relation tooperation of the plurality of cleaning installations; and analyzing thereceived operating parameter data to generate a management reportcomprising information relating to operation of one or more of theplurality of cleaning installations.
 2. A method as defined in claim 1,wherein at least two of the plurality of cleaning installations arelocated at different geographical locations and operated by acorporation, and wherein the analyzing act generates a management reportof operating parameter data corresponding to the at least two cleaninginstallations for the corporation.
 3. A method as defined in claim 1,wherein the management report comprises received operating parameterdata relative to target operating data.
 4. A method as defined in claim3, wherein the target operating data is based on business entityaverages.
 5. A method as defined in claim 3, further comprising:determining the target operating data based on received operatingparameter data.
 6. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising:providing the management report in electronic form to an operator ormanager of at least one of the plurality of cleaning installations.
 7. Amethod as defined in claim 1, further comprising: in response theanalyzing act, transmitting one or more commands to one of the pluralityof cleaning installations, wherein the one or more commands requestmodification of an operating setting of a cleaning machine at thecleaning installation.
 8. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein themanagement report comprises information relating to utility usage by theone or more cleaning installations.
 9. A method as defined in claim 1,wherein the management report comprises information relating to chemicalproduct usage by the one or more cleaning installations.
 10. A method asdefined in claim 1, wherein the management report comprises data relatedto maintenance of one or more cleaning machines at the one or morecleaning installations.
 11. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein atleast one of the plurality of cleaning installations comprises awarewash machine to which received operating parameter data pertains.12. A method for monitoring operation of a cleaning machine at acleaning installation, wherein the cleaning installation comprises achemical product dispenser for dispensing one or more chemical productsfor use by the cleaning machine, the method comprising: communicatingoperating parameter data associated with operation of the cleaningmachine to a central server via a communication device, the operatingparameter data comprising dispenser data relating to distribution of theone or more chemical products for use by the cleaning machine; andgenerating, at the central server, a management report based on thecommunicated operating parameter data, wherein the management reportincludes information relating to chemical product usage by the cleaningmachine.
 13. A method as defined in claim 12, wherein the managementreport comprises usage data relative to target data.
 14. A method asdefined in claim 12, wherein the communicating act comprisescommunicating operating parameter data associated with operation of aplurality of cleaning machines located at a plurality of cleaninginstallations, the generating act further comprising: generating thereport to include comparison data comparing different cleaninginstallations within a determined grouping of the cleaninginstallations.
 15. A method as defined in claim 12, further comprising:analyzing the management report to optimize cleaning machine operation.16. A method as defined in claim 12, further comprising: providing thereport in electronic form to a cleaning machine operator or manager. 17.A method for monitoring operation of a plurality of cleaninginstallations, wherein each cleaning installation comprises at least onecleaning machine for performing a cleaning process and a chemicalproduct dispenser for dispensing one or more chemical products for useby the at least one cleaning machine to perform the cleaning process,the method comprising: receiving operating parameter data associatedwith operation of the plurality of cleaning installations, wherein theoperating parameter data comprises dispenser data relating todistribution of the one or more chemical products for use by thecleaning machines to perform cleaning processes at the plurality ofcleaning installations; and analyzing the received operating parameterdata to generate a management report comprising information relating tochemical product usage by the plurality of cleaning installations.
 18. Amethod as defined in claim 17, wherein the management report comprisesusage data relative to target data.
 19. A method as defined in claim 18,wherein the target data is based on business entity averages.
 20. Amethod as defined in claim 17, wherein management report includescomparison data comparing chemical product usage for different cleaninginstallations within a determined grouping of the plurality of cleaninginstallations.